Wyatt Earp [Blu-ray]

This massive, in-depth study of the dark Western icon comes off with mixed results. Trying to capture the whole life, (warts and all) of the lawman-criminal-brother-fortune hunter, director Lawrence Kasdan gains points for sheer scale, giving us a rich epic painted in dark colors with gritty settings. But the visual poetry and extensive foreshadowing ruin the dramatic drive. Some scenes have as much impact as stalker movies; you're just waiting for someone to get knocked off. As Earp, Kevin Costner is not afraid to look rumpled and play colorlessly (as in The Bodyguard), but it saps the energy of this 3-hour-plus film. The only relief is Dennis Quaid as a droll Doc Holiday, a much more engaging character. New faces Linden Ashby and Joanna Going (as an Earp brother and a lover, respectively) are solid finds, though the remainder of the female cast is barely given anything to do. Best is the first half, with Costner, as hip as he was in his Silverado days, going through a series of ups and downs until he accidentally finds his profession. Great set design (Ida Random) utilizes dozens of similar settings that always look distinctive. Recommended to fans of the star and the genre, but the story never justifies its length. --Doug Thomas

Dramatic and Entertaining

Review Date: May 4, 2002

Reviewer: Kate, Naperville, Illinois USA

Historical inaccuracies aside, this movie was the best I've seen in a long while. Kevin Costner was even colder than usual (as in "For the Love of the Game"), an expressionless look on his face for much of the movie, but anything else would not have done justice to the character. The supporting cast was unremarkable, but Dennis Quaid as Doc Holliday was incredible...in my opinion, he stole the show and deserved much more screen time. While many of the Earp brothers (excluding Wyatt, of course) were faceless and often difficult if not impossible to tell apart, Quaid captured Doc Holliday's character in every action--speaking, riding, making one of those cynical and hilarious one-liners (Like when Wyatt confides in Doc that he is his closest friend, and Holliday replies, after a long silence, "Shut up," or when he comments that Wyatt wants to be a lawman and an outlaw, getting "the best of both worlds."). It took me a considerable amount of time, at least an hour, to finally believe the video case and conclude that Doc Holliday was in fact played by Dennis Quaid. How did that large, handsome, all-american actor from "Frequency" manage to pull off a skinny, dying man? And that voice...I loved the voice of Doc Holliday, and would rewind the tape sometimes to listen again. Rich and deep, it was the only thing that ultimatly conviced me that Holliday was played by Quaid. Undoubtably a movie worth seeing, even more than once, I recommend Wyatt Earp to anyone.

Sprawling Widescreen Epic

Review Date: March 14, 2004

Reviewer: Declan J Connaughton, Dublin, Ireland

Have to say I thoroughly enjoyed Laurence Kasden's film, which goes further than any other in it's dramatisation of the life and times of Wyatt Earp. Kevin Costner, in the title role, is perfectly cast, aging from Earp's younger days into old age. The performance is notable in it's gradual changing and mood from a care free, wild individual to a middle aged and hardened man - and ultimately into a serious, but thoughtful Wyatt Earp at the conclusion. It must be said that Denis Quaid's incredible Doc Holiday outdoes all the rest. The viewer has to look twice to recognise that it is indeed Denis Quaid playing the role. The Actor had lost so much weight for the part, that he looks like the dying gunfighter and gambler one would expect, suffering from TB, in a portrayal which no other actor, including Victor Mature, Kirk Douglas and more recently Val Kilmer, can compete with. His Southern accent is also flawless. He also paints Holiday in a more caring light then before, less self centred, but no less capable of violence. The movie itself, with a running time of over three and a half hours, is a relatively factual chronicle of the life of the mythical Lawman, and of his complicated relationships with his brothers and their wives, and of the hardships that shaped and moulded him. He comes across as a very deliberate person, but also very cold and ultimately inconsiderate, as well as being heroic and the paragon of justice. One thinks of Burt Lancaster as Earp in "Gunfight at the OK Corral", but it is rather Lancaster's role in Michael Winner's "Lawman", that Costner evokes in his role. The notion of "when the legend becomes fact, print the legend" from 'The Man Who shot Libery Valance', is also brought to mind at the conclusion with the re-telling of the Tommy O' Rourke legend. The rest of the cast is uniformly excellent with Gene Hackman perfect as the Paternalistic mentor of the Earp familly. The whole conflict between the Clanton and McLowery clans is more clearly examined, although they don't dominate proceedings in the way that Walter Brennan as Ike Clanton did in "My Darling Clemintine" It's also nice to see Karen Grassle in a small part, along with Bill Pullman, Tim Sizemore and Jobeth Williams. Mare Winningham is also notable in her role as the tragic prostitute who assumes Earp's name in the vain hope that some day he would love her and marry her, and Issabella Rossalini plays Doc Holiday's Kate, tempestuous and attractive, but violent and hard. This edition is presented in it's full widescreen aspect, and is best viewed as such, taking in the wide prarie vistas, and detailed railroad scenes. James Newton Howard contributes a memorable epic score. A must for all movie epics.

Not Tombstone, Not Meant To Be

Review Date: September 11, 2004

Reviewer: Bob Siegel, Santee, California USA

Released around the same time as the movie, "Tombstone", this movie is unfairly compared and it is true that the sequences surrounding the gunfight at OK Corral are more enjoyable to watch in "Tombstone" (where we got to know the villians better and therefore got to hate them more, neccesary in a good action movie) But "Wyatt Erp" is not an action movie. It is an epic, concentrating on a character study of what made this man the legend he became. Costner does a superb job. (better, and with more depth than Kurt Russell, although Russell was also good, so this is a compliment to Costner, not a complaint about Russell) Dennis Quiad is as good as Val Kilmar in his portrayal of Doc Holiday but he is not featured as much as Kilmar was and does not have all the good lines Kilmar had, such as "I have two guns, one for each of you." I liked it. If I had not seen "Tombstone" first, I would have loved it and that is not fair to the producers so I am giving it a top rating.

COMPREHENSIVE AND INSIGHTFUL

Review Date: August 22, 2004

Reviewer: D. McAllister, Somewhere in the Field

I have heard much said in comparison between WYATT EARP, starring Kevin Costner, and TOMBSTONE, starring Kurt Russell. Invariably most critics seem to gravitate to the shorter, bloodier TOMBSTONE. But I'd have to say that I like both for different reasons. WYATT EARP is classic Costner. Long, meticulously accurate and comprehensive. I like this movie for the insight that it provides into Earp's storied life. Earp's adolescence and early adulthood are usually left out leading Earp aficionados to believe that he was born full grown and living in Tombstone instead of in Missouri. The story of the loss of his wife and the short-lived life of crime were fascinating. Earp's work as a buffalo skinner and freighter also added to the ultimate lore. WYATT EARP is very likely one of Costner's best performances, more believable than his role as John Dunbar in DANCES WITH WOLVES and a precursor to his recent triumph in OPEN RANGE. As with TOMBSTONE, it's interesting that the scene stealer is Doc Holliday, played in WYATT EARP by Dennis Quaid. Whereas TOMBSTONE'S Doc, Val Kilmer, emerges as more of a dandy, Quaid, with the emaciated personna that he assumed for the role (he lost over forty pounds!), his steely-eyed scowl and his rampant sarcasm, is much more believable as Holliday, reputed to be one of the coldest killers in the history of the West, than is Kilmer. Granted, Kilmer is wonderful, but Dennis Quaid emerges as the frightening, psychotic killer that Holliday was. WYATT EARP also showcases the talents of many of Hollywood's brightest stars. Gene Hackman, though in no more than a cameo, is wonderful as Nicholas Earp, the patriarch of a large family who instills within the minds of his family that nothing matters more than blood and kin. Catherine O'Hara and JoBeth Williams star as the feisty wives of Morgan and James Earp. Mare Winningham is perfect as the ill-fated Mattie Blaylock, the woman who assumed that she was Wyatt Earp's common-law wife and, in the end, fades into a cloud drug-induced stupor. Bill Pullman is wonderful as Ed Masterson, the "affable," unheralded brother of the famous Bat Masterson, played by Tom Sizemore. And Ma Ingles, Karen Grassle, is trotted out in the cameo of Wyatt's mother-in-law, Mrs. Sutherland. Yes, WYATT EARP is long and drawn out. But the story, the James Newton Howard soundtrack and the wonderful panoramic cinematography are well worth it. THE HORSEMAN

1a and 1b

Review Date: December 11, 2004

Reviewer: Shadowtron, United States

Many people draw comparisons between this film and "Tombstone" (released a year earlier). But what it really comes down to is personal taste. One is not better than the other. I consider them 1a and 1b in the "O.K. Corral" in the western movie mythos. My personal preference, obviously, is this film. I loved the epic feel of it. "Tombstone" for me, was more Hollywood with thinly drawn characters, who played second fiddle to the climactic battle, and lots of gunfighting. "Wyatt Earp" took its time. Some say that that is its biggest drawback. I never once felt the movie was getting long in the tooth. Following Earp around, watching him grow into the legend he'd become, was fascinating. There was more drama to it, more emotion. I absolutely adored this film and recommend it to any fan of Westerns and of Wyatt Earp in particular. As side note I'd like to say that anyone who believes Kilmer edged Quaid as Doc Holiday must not have been watching the same movie. Kilmer with his pale make-up and hollywood jezibelle accent just doesn't hold a candle Quaid. Qauid dropped 40 pounds for the role. His skin looked loose and sickly. His voice was a booming, phlegm-filled southern drawl accented with frequent bouts of severe coughing. Dennis Quaid became Doc Holiday, whereas Kilmer merely starred as the character. Unfortunately Quaid doesn't get half of the screen time as Kilmer, which is why Kilmer has become the popular choice.